Privacy in the Digital Age

I've never googled myself.  I probably should, just to know what traces of my existence exist on the web.  It's not that I'm not curious; I'm just afraid to see the condensed, regurgitated-for-public-consumption version of myself that other people (might)  find.  And after all - and as the articles we read this weed so carefully point out - there's not too much I can do about it.

Up until this point, I've been pretty ignorant as to more than just my unintentional public profile; I've also not paid much attention to my browsing history, cookies, or newsletter sign ups.  I was one of the many who blissfully traded their privacy for a 10% discount.  Like the Singer article states, “People are always willing to trade privacy and information when they see the direct value of sharing that information."  If I get something for it, it's fine. But when a company profits from my information without my direct consent, I'm not so fine.  The most poignant quote of the week was, for me, "We have traded our privacy for the wealth of information the web delivers to us..." 

The whole concept of selling my privacy (and personal data) for a coupon code makes me feel pretty dirty. In the Harvard Business Review's "A Penny for Your Privacy,"(https://hbr.org/2012/10/a-penny-for-your-privacy), it's clear we've all been doing it for quite awhile now.  Our Kroger cards and frequent flyer accounts have been luring us in for years.  And as long as the benefit is understood, and tangible to the account/internet/card user, it's acceptable.  But that's not always - or even usually - the case.  

UCLA's Anderson School of Business defines "Data Mining" as follows: 

 Generally, data mining (sometimes called data or knowledge discovery) is the process of analyzing data from different perspectives and summarizing it into useful information - information that can be used to increase revenue, cuts costs, or both. Data mining software is one of a number of analytical tools for analyzing data. It allows users to analyze data from many different dimensions or angles, categorize it, and summarize the relationships 

I get that data mining is a thing.  And it can be extremely useful, as in the MIT Technology Review article, "Data Mining  Reveals the Four Urban Conditions that Create Vibrant Urban City Life:" https://www.technologyreview.com/s/601107/data-mining-reveals-the-four-urban-conditions-that-create-vibrant-city-life/

But the idea that my data is being mined - and sold - for profit is annoying, to say the least.  An article from the ACLU: https://www.aclu.org/blog/eight-problems-big-data, states that data mining, should it be used to identify risks for Parkinson's or cancer, for example, might be useful.  It then goes on to list 8 problems, including misuse by law enforcement and eventual anti-social behavior driven by fear.  It seems as though the big benefit of data mining is in the for-profit market, not the altruistic one.